As Census Data Reveals Growing Diversity, Nation Must Guard Against Gerrymandering

AS CENSUS DATA REVEALS GROWING DIVERSITY, NATION MUST GUARD AGAINST RACIAL GERRYMANDERING

NEW YORK (August 12, 2021) -- With today’s release of 2020 Census Redistricting Data revealing the nation’s increasing diversity, communities of color must brace themselves against attempts to dilute their voting power through racial gerrymandering, National Urban League President and CEO Marc H. Morial said today.

“As the violent backlash to the 2020 Presidential Election showed us,  efforts to preserve white dominance in our political process are all too alive and well,” Morial said. “The release of the redistricting data presents an opportunity to fulfill the American ideal of ‘one person, one vote.’”

Historically, state legislators have sought to neutralize Black and Brown votes through "cracking" – splitting communities of color among several white-majority Congressional districts – and "packing" -- concentrating communities of color into a single district to reduce their voting power in other districts.  The most egregious example, Morial said, is prison-based gerrymandering that transfers the Black and Brown population of incarcerated individuals – mostly unable to vote -- to the white-majority districts that host prisons.

“The news that the nation’s white population is shrinking while the Black and Brown populations continue to grow is likely to provoke the anti-democratic, racially-anxious contingent among state legislatures charged withdrawing the new district lines,”  Morial said. “The National Urban League has long embraced the vision of a multicultural, pluralistic democracy and we call on every state legislator to approach redistricting with that same vision.”

State redistricting efforts must be transparent and accountable, and open to the full participation of community members, he said, reiterating his call for passage of the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, which restores the full protections of the 1965 Voting Rights Act, and the For The People Act, which bans partisan gerrymandering, enhances the ability of voters to challenge discriminatory maps in court, requires meaningful transparency in the map-drawing process, and mandates the use of independent commissions to draw maps.

Morial noted that today’s data release reflects a “Herculean effort” to obtain the best possible count on the part of career census professionals, civil rights organizations, and a network of census stakeholders, including a lawsuit filed by the National Urban League that blocked the Trump Administration from rushing the deadline.

“The National Urban League will continue to fight for democracy and fair redistricting for all, despite the handful of politicians who are trying to rig the process and tip the scales for partisan and racially motivated objectives,” Morial said. “Redistricting is foundational to American democracy. It determines funding for vital services and institutions like schools, roads, hospitals, and our elected leadership.

“When we draw fair maps, our communities are represented by leaders who know us, who represent our needs, and fight for the resources that our children and families need in order to thrive,” he said.

The National Urban League is a historic civil rights organization dedicated to economic empowerment in order to elevate the standard of living in historically underserved urban communities. The National Urban League spearheads the efforts of its 91 local affiliates through the development of programs, public policy research and advocacy, providing direct services that impact and improve the lives of more than 2 million people annually nationwide. Visit www.nul.org and follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram: @NatUrbanLeague.